UMass hockey team tumbles 4-3 at home to St. Lawrence

The Republican/CHRISTOPHER EVANSUMass center Cory Quirk, left, scores on St. Lawrence goalie Robby Moss during the second period Friday night at the Mullins Center in Amherst.

By DICK BAKER

AMHERST - If the Vermont loss was a letdown from the Boston College win, then Friday night's display fell several levels lower.

Showing very little intensity until the final moments of the game, the Minutemen fell 4-3 to St. Lawrence in a non-conference game that the Minutemen played more like an exhibition match before 2,708 at the Mullins Center.

Don't be fooled by the closeness of the score. UMass trailed 4-0 during the second period, finally scoring a shorthanded goal by Cory Quirk at 14:53 to give some hope. But through the first two periods, UMass was 0 for 5 on the power play, and 32 seconds into its sixth failure when the period ended. And despite having six power plays to one for the Saints, UMass held only a 16-15 advantage in shots after two periods.

And that was just fine for Saints freshman goaltender Robby Moss, who was making his first start. Moss' biography in the media guide says he likes playing ping pong, and certainly opponents in that sport had tested him more than the Minutemen did last night.

The last two goals for UMass came after they pulled goaltender Paul Dainton for an extra attacker. Quirk added his second goal with 1:03 left to make it 4-2, and an Alex Berry blast cut it to 4-3 with 37 seconds remaining.

And amazingly, they almost tied it. Chris Davis leaned in from the left side and took a backhander a bit wide that was stopped. Did the last minute flurry take away any of the sting from the otherwise poor performance?

"Absolutely not," UMass coach Toot Cahoon said. "We're out of sync for whatever reason. We don't play with a sense of urgency. We're not committed to the concepts we've trained for. It's one thing to know it, its another thing to do it."

Part of the credit for UMass problems goes to the Saints shot-blocking capabilities, which frustrated UMass with its long shots from the point on the power play. UMass, down 2-0, failed to convert on a 5 on 3 power play early in the second period. Martin Nolet did have a shot that hit the post, which if it went in might have changed the complexion of the game.

Were distraught right now, the kids are all over the map, Cahoon said. I've got to try and give them a little direction, It probably wont be in the form of anything verbal, it will be definitely physical.

Alex Curran opened the scoring for St. Lawrence, redirecting a pass from Mike McKenzie at 6:38 of the first period. The next two goals came on breakaways by Zach Miskovic and McKenzie. The fourth goal was a shot from the top of the circle by Miskovic.

"We didn't compete as hard as they did," Quirk said. "From the drop of the puck, they controlled the play, and they scored some goals as a result. They outbattled us. Its just unacceptable, and we have to be held accountable for that."

A couple of games back, UMass was a ranked team. A win over Vermont, and one wonders if last night's performance would have been better. Getting up for non-conference games, sometimes is a challenge to Hockey East teams. UMass slipped to 6-6-6-1. St. Lawrence improved to 5-6-1. The Saints do have a win over New Hampshire, 4-1.

"Who are we as a program not to get up for anybody, 'that's nonsense?'" Cahoon said. "And if these guys think they're something because they beat BC one time, and beat BU one time, that is such a huge mistake. We talk about that all the time. There are Division I hockey players that become great teams, and Division I hockey players that become so-so teams. I haven't seen the great team yet, I've seen some great performances."

UP TO THE MINUTE: St. Lawrence senior defenseman Matt Generous is a familiar name around these parts. Generous was a former captain and team defenseman of the year for the New England Junior Falcons before attending St. Lawrence. The Cheshire, Conn. native had nine goals and 16 assists in his final junior season Quirks shorthanded goal was the first UMass shorthanded score of the season. Last year, UMass also had its first shorthanded goal against St. Lawrence. The Minutemen are home the next two Friday nights with non-conference games against Atlantic Hockey opponents Connecticut and AIC.